Pieces of My Heart
by Julie7
Summary: RyoSaku - "They said everything happens for a reason. They said better loved and lost, then not loved at all. They were lies to her, all lies."
1. P r o l o g u e

Disclaimer: Takeshi Konomi created Prince of Tennis. Anything you recognize – I don't own. Anything you don't – I do own.  
  
AN: Yah!!! My first PoT story...it's a bit of angst right now, but it will get better ...but meanwhile...read on. =] Thank you, Kelly for editing and proofreading this!!!! Your suggestions are great!!  
  
** Pieces of My Heart  
  
Prologue – Eternally**  
  
They said everything happens for a reason. They said better loved and lost, then not loved at all. They were lies to her, all lies. Obviously, the person that created them had not experienced what she was experiencing now. Would it had been all easier, if there had been less nights of endless crying? If she had not fallen madly, and deeply in love with him, would it change a thing?  
  
The only thing that would have softened the cruel reality that she was facing right now would be the "what ifs" that clouded her mind, and filled her thoughts every waking minute. What if they had married? What if they had created a family, and became grandparents? What if, what if, what if...just so many "_what ifs"_.  
  
They also said time mended the heart. Yet it was another myth. Nothing could put back the pieces of her broken heart together again, and nothing could bring him back. Nothing. Could time make her forget his smile and laughter that rung through her dark mind? No. Time also would never help her to find another man to do what he did. He was her soul mate, he will always be her soul mate, at least in her heart, but probably not in his. Dead or alive, she was his...  
  
Eternally.  
  
It was so long ago, yet it seemed like yesterday when he first abandoned her, left her drowning in her loneliness, pain, confusion, hate, and love. She cried so many tears for him; tears that people told her weren't worth it. She tried. She really did. He was the one who told her that she shouldn't cry for something that wasn't worth it, but was he worth it? She didn't know. She hadn't known a lot of things for the past six month.  
  
Her mind was nearly driven to the point of insanity. She couldn't think, talk, act, or feel without the thoughts of him running through her mind. She tried to end this pain, she really did. First, she tried getting over him, but that was impossible, so then, she tried blocking out the memories, but that was also impossible. He used her, feeding her sweet words to encourage her as he took everything she had away from her. Yes, she hated him, but she loved him more.  
  
And the thing that destroyed her most was...  
  
She still did.

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She tried so hard, just to erase the thoughts of him out of her mind, but it's easier said than done. She had been a fool since day one, but she didn't care. She didn't think that it all happened too fast and too well for her, She didn't care about the consequences, She didn't care, because for once, things were finally going her way. She grabbed and tried to hold on to him as though he was air, water, or something that she couldn't live without.

She let out a humourless chuckle and looked down at the book that was once so precious to her. Her hands smoothed over the aged cover, her eyes taking in its appearance in memory. She used to write in it all the time, recording all of the events that happened in her life, her thoughts and feelings. She hadn't looked at this for half a year because she wasn't ready to face all of the lies that she wrote in there, all of the lies that she believed. She wanted to say that she's not ready to do this yet, that she couldn't face a new beginning.  
  
But she had to be ready.  
  
Or else, she would never be able to move on. She would never laugh, smile, and joke around with Tomo-chan. Every single time a stranger says "Mada mada dane," the pain in her chest would intensifies. Hot tears would spill over her cheeks, and she would cry for hours until she could calm down again.

It was his entire fault.  
  
If he hadn't come into her life, messed up her perfectly planned agenda, then she would never been this way. Most of all, her heart wouldn't be in pieces.  
  
She would be happy.  
  
She thought that she was happy, before she knew all of the deception and lies. She would dismiss all of the warning signs that came her way, thinking that God finally made her prayers come true, and she was only too happy to even mind one bit. She took it all for granted. Maybe she suspected deep down in her consciousness, but she didn't want to believe, so she refused to listen to her head.  
  
Then, the truth came out.  
  
And Ryuzaki Sakuno's world fell apart.  
  
And nothing else would matter to her. Ever. Again.

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It was time to forget all of her foolish mistakes, and continue to record all the events, thoughts and feelings into that book. Perhaps she will reread all her previous entries. Then, there would be no more hiding from the reality. It was time to face it. It was time to pick up the pieces of her heart, and piece it back together.  
  
Then, she would cry no more. She would refuse to let a selfish high school boy affect her like that. And she would move on.  
  
This time, she was ready.  
  
Sakuno rubbed her temple warily. Being miserable sure doesn't help your headache. With a heavy sigh, she picked up her old diary, and opened up to the first blank page. She took out a pen, and wrote the date on the top, Friday, April 23, 2004. It's been so long now.  
  
A small, genuine smile lit up her face as she thought about the new beginnings, the new choices she would make, and the new life she will be giving herself.  
  
It was the first smile that she had had in six month. Ever since the day that she found out, she didn't have a reason to smile. The bright, cheerful, and happy Sakuno was gone, replaced by a shell of her. She didn't try to plaster a fake smile on her face, like Fuji did all the time. She didn't laugh anymore, even if it was when Horio went on and on about his "two years of tennis experience."  
  
But she was determined to have more reasons to smile and laugh for the year to come.  
  
She was sure of it.  
  
With a pen in her hand, Ryuzaki Sakuno was about to start a brand new chapter of her life, one that was without Echizen Ryoma.  
  
It was kind of ironic, wasn't it? Just when she was about to step forward out of misery, Sakuno hesitated. A flash of doubt came into her mind, but she brushed it aside.  
  
Tsk, tsk, tsk, Sakuno. Haven't you learned from your mistakes already? You never brush off something that just instantly comes to your mind, like gut instincts. You knew that you dismissed the "signs of warning" with Ryoma, just like you did with that flash of doubt.  
  
But she went on anyways, trying to be happy. Not knowing that she was probably already killing her chance at real happiness.  
  
While Sakuno thought that she had been a fool to believe everything that came out of Ryoma's mouth, she should've believed one thing.  
  
He loved her, he did then, and he does now. There was no change of heart in him, only regrets. He, too, tried to move on, and failed miserably.  
  
What would happen to those two people? One already started to move on, but is keeping on looking back no matter how determined she is, while the other person is feeling regrets, pain, love, and longing at the same time, still trying to swallow his pride, and admit his mistakes, guilt, and love for her?

Only time would tell.  
  
AN: Read and Review!!!!!!!! Whew.... that is it for the prologue. It was much longer than I thought it would be, but anyways, the next chapter should be out next week. I'm pretty sure that it's going to be in Ryoma's POV. TTYL. =]


	2. G u i l t

Disclaimer: Takeshi Konomi created Prince of Tennis. Anything you recognize – I don't own. Anything you don't – I do own.  
  
AN: To clarify everything, everyone in PoT anime who is a freshman in Seigaku Jr. High is a senior in Seigaku High School. Fuji, Eiji, Tezuka, Oishi, Takeshi, Inui, Momo, and Kaidoh left for either college or university. Anyways, thank you Rachel for editing, encouraging, and putting up with my disapproval of "typicalness". Thank you Kelly for proofreading my screwed up grammar, listening to my rants about lack of ideas. Can't wait to write our one-shot!! Hehehe. Here's my second chapter from Ryoma's POV and a little from other people's POV, read and review!!! =]  
  
Pieces of My Heart  
  
Chapter 1 – Guilt  
  
Golden eyes hungrily taking in her form, the normal blank expression upon his face was replaced by a small, true smile. By the intensity that he was staring at her, one would think that he was trying to bore a hole into her back. For once, Echizen Ryoma was paying attention to something in English, his best subject. Too bad for the teacher, that the "something" doesn't seem to be the blackboard or himself. Ryoma's eyes roamed over her again as she bent down to pick up her fallen pencil. When the gaze came to a stop at her delicate, defined features. Ryoma suddenly found out that his gaze couldn't be torn away from those cinnamon brown eyes.  
  
As a new realization came to mind, Ryoma frowned. Big mistake, as upon seeing his grumpy expression, Sakuno lowered her eyes from his and turned back to face the teacher. Once her back was safely turned around, his eyes seemed to lose all of the guards around them. Disappointment mixed with longing was apparent in his eyes.  
  
"Hey, Sakuno-chan." Tomoko, who sat beside her, whispered.  
  
"Hai?" The object of his intense staring turned her head just enough to answer her best friend.  
  
"Can you lend me your math textbook?" the loud and hyper girl said, actually trying to be quiet for once. "I forgot to do my math homework, and since we have math next, I really need to finish it."  
  
She smiled an amused smile. "Sure," she said, as she got the thick textbook from her binder. Sakuno waited until the teacher turned around and quickly handed it to Tomoko before taking the pen into her hand again.  
  
He knew it would sound stupid, but he was actually jealous of a pen and a math textbook. The way that Sakuno lightly brushed over the textbook and how her hands tightly clutched her pen just...bothered him. It should've been /his/ hands that were clutching hers, /his/ fingers lightly tracing over her skin, and /his/ face that she was smiling to.  
  
But it wasn't.  
  
If he could have changed what he had done, he would have. Ryoma would've taken back all of the pain he caused her and put it upon himself. But he couldn't. No matter how much he wished to retrace every single wrong move he made, he couldn't. That didn't change the fact that he wanted to take all of that shame to the grave. Neither did it change his wanting to kill himself for hurting her. People told him that what has been done, has been done. It's over, and now there's nothing that he can do about it. He thought so himself. Still, he couldn't deny the fact that he owed her an explanation. It had been a long time since that day, six month and a week to be exact. He still hadn't clarified it to her yet. He wanted to, he really did.  
  
Except that he couldn't.  
  
If Momo-sempai and Kikumaru-sempai were still here, they would have died to see the day that Echizen Ryoma admitted he couldn't face someone. But to him, Sakuno wasn't just a 'someone.' She was the one that broke down the walls around his heart, one by one, even though he hadn't even planned to let her go near them. She was the one that made home cooked meals with her loud best friend for him, feeding him all of her best cooking. She was the one that was horrible in English, a subject that he excelled in, but was too shy to even ask for his guidance. And most of all...  
  
She was the one that he had fallen in love with.  
  
He offered his help after a rather long wait. But then, a person could only be patient for so long. Her eyes looked up to him shyly when he greeted her, and brightened when he told her that her English really sucked and that she desperately need his help. Normal people would've turned angry and snapped at him after a comment like that. Sakuno didn't. After a long time of trying to talk to him, she understood him. She knew that he wasn't a guy of words, and sometimes, his arrogance got the best of him. She knew that most of the time, his insults were his way of protecting his pride. He didn't want her to know that he was watching her, of all the people in the class. Not many people were like that. In fact, only a few people really understood him. Fuji did, Tezuka did, Eiji did, and Momo did.  
  
Those people were his best friends, his ex-teammates, and his confidents. To tell the truth, Sakuno was none of that. He didn't share the deep friendship connections he shared with Fuji, the likeliness he shared between himself and Tezuka. She wasn't outgoing enough to hug everyone like Eiji did, particularly to him, nor did he have the competitive streak he had with Momo.  
  
But they understood each other.  
  
Of course, that was before the day that he made the bet about her. He had been sure that she would have noticed that something was wrong with him ever since. Even though his words were absolutely sincere, Ryoma still couldn't get the guilt out of his system. She, of course, being naïve and inexperienced, believed him wholeheartedly. Rarely, she would catch a glimpse of guilt in his greenish golden eyes, but she would dismiss it as soon as he smiled.  
  
He felt really guilty after that.  
  
Yes, you heard it right, Ryoma actually felt guilty. Wow, he actually had a heart. But whom are you trying to kid, she was the one that showed him that he was capable of loving. They had been friends for a while before the bet, so he could use that to his advantage, right? Ryoma wasn't evil, the other guy had been gloating and bragging to other people that he had enough charm to seduce her. After listening for a while, (It wasn't actually eavesdropping, Renko had been talking so loud that the whole universe could hear him), Ryoma had to interrupt. Anger was boiling through his veins, and his eyes started twitching in annoyance. Who does Renko think he is, talking about Sakuno like that? And of course, Renko just had to have insulted his male pride by telling him that he, too, had been longing after Sakuno. He can't deny that. He did like her then, that change to something more after a while, but it was a whole different story. Again, Ryoma's arrogance and ego got the best of him, and in a spur of the moment thing, he made the bet with Renko. If he couldn't seduce Sakuno in six months, Renko would get his tennis racket and go after Sakuno himself. Sure, that tennis racket was special to him, but not that special that he was willing to trade Sakuno for it. Nothing is that special. Besides, there's no way that Ryoma would let a creep like him to go near her. Never.  
  
Too bad /she/ doesn't know that.  
  
Well, nobody can really blame her, after all, no one really told her the whole story, not to say that she was willing to hear it for the first few months. Not a lot of people knew about the bet, and even less people knew about the truth. In fact, only he, Renko, his close friends, and –  
  
"RING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
The sharp bell signaled that English was over, and it proceeded to break Ryoma's thoughts and concentration. "EVERYONE, THERE'S AN ENGLISH TEST NEXT CLASS ON THE NOTES WE TOOK TODAY!!!" The English teacher proceeded to shout over the noise before everyone left. He glared at his notebook, which had nothing on it since he was daydreaming instead of copying down notes (not that he needed them though). Standing up wearily, Ryoma gathered his books just fast enough to catch a glimpse of her before she walked out of the door. Quickly, he too walked out of that door to get to his next class.  
  
Dodging people carefully in the crowded hallway while trying to walk, Ryoma's eyes widened with alarm as he saw Sakuno crashing into someone due to the fact that she was looking down. Almost on instinct, Ryoma stepped out and was about to run for her when he realized something. They weren't dating anymore; in fact, she didn't even want to see him. The pain in his head was as harsh as when it first hit him about six months ago. He stopped suddenly, causing people around him to look questioningly at the current tennis prodigy of Seigaku High School, since Fuji Syusuke had left for university.  
  
It was the sight of Sakuno in another guy's arms that had really shaken him up. The person whom she crashed to turned out to be the vice- captain of the tennis team: Kazami Haiyato. He steadied her in his arms and smiled down at her sheepishly. From where Ryoma was standing, that image did not look right at all. First of all, Kazami should not have his arms around Sakuno's waist simply because they had crashed into each other. Second of all, he shouldn't smile down at her in that way with a flirtatious undertone. Third of all, Kazami DEFINITELY shouldn't hold Sakuno for that long, like in those sappy romantic movies where couples in love held on to each other for thirty minutes.  
  
Okay, maybe he was being a bit too possessive. But this isn't just anyone. It's about Sakuno, so naturally, he was concerned. His sharp eyes could make out Kazami's lips moving, so that meant they were talking. Ryoma practically glided over as silently as possible to hearing distance, just to listen to their conversation.  
  
"Gomen, gomen, Ryuzaki-chan." Kazami apologized, although he didn't look like he was sorry.  
  
"No problem, Kazami-san." She replied. "It was my fault for not looking."  
  
Kazami smiled gently, finally letting go of Sakuno's waist before straightening up himself. He gathered his and Sakuno's books from the floor, where they were scattered around as a result from their crash. "There," he said brightly, "no damage done." The first warning bell rang and he stepped away from Sakuno before handing back her stuff. "Be careful, Ryuzaki-chan," he warned, giving a small wave and smile as he walked off to his next class.  
  
Sakuno smiled a little to herself. Kazami was totally harmless and she was sure that rest of the female population agreed as well. With messy dark hair that glistened in the sun and gentle golden eyes, he had more than enough to make a girl look twice. Not to mention his height, with an amazing 185 centimeters, he could easily tower over anyone. An all around nice guy and an excellent student, he was doubtlessly one of the top choices for valedictorian for the end of their school year. His generous title of the vice-captain of the Seigaku tennis club didn't hurt either. Of course, practically nobody could beat the captain, as it was Ryoma after all.  
  
Don't think about him, she scolded at herself gently. Things are finally going better now, with her grades rising, being more and more like her normal self, and even just talking to Kazami. It was not the time for Ryoma. She shouldn't be going down that road again anyways. Although, there was something that had been nagging at her mind... Now you mention it, there were some apparent similarities between Kazami and Ryoma. For one, they both have dark hair, although Ryoma's was more taken care of than Kazami's. Second of all, the rich gold eyes were doubtlessly one of the physical traits those two shared. On the tennis court, they shared the same ambition and stubbornness. Though Ryoma was almost unbeatable now, he had found a VERY worthy opponent in Kazami. How did she know? Well, she used to watch the tennis club all the time before, when she and Ryoma were -. Sakuno stopped her thoughts abruptly and turned around to get to her next class. No thinking about them, don't compare them with each other. Too bad the similarities end there, she thought. The thoughts of those two very, very attractive guys began again, almost bitterly. While their physical features were almost the same, they couldn't be any more completely different people. Ryoma is distant, cold even. Kazami is friendly and pleasant. He is also an attentive student, one of the teachers' favourite. Ryoma was the type of person that sleeps in class or just gazes off into space. The only reason that the teachers haven't failed him yet was because of his abnormally high test and assignment marks, as well as the fact that he always did his homework.  
  
"RING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
The second warning bell rang, and Sakuno quickened her pace to her math class, not noticing Ryoma, who was walking to the science room after she left the spot where Kazami and her had stood. Of course, she didn't notice the grumpy expression on his face either. As they both left for their last class on that Friday afternoon, neither of them gave in to the urge to look behind them.  
  
Clueless cinnamon brown eyes blinked at the notes. To her, the strange characters in English barely made any sense and the only thing she understood was the Japanese translations she wrote beside them. Groaning while putting her head in her hands, Sakuno wondered how on earth her sensei expected anyone besides Ryoma to get anything close to an A on this test. She was good with practically every single subject, but she really sucked at English.  
  
For the past six months, her average was always dragged down because of her horrible English mark. What went wrong? She used to get at least decent marks on the difficult foreign language before. Well, her conscious reminded her, that was when Ryoma tutored you in it. Realizing that it was like the millionth time that he triggered some sort of memory in her mind, Sakuno forced her mind to take a turn back to her studies. Groaning in weariness again, she also remembered that not only does she have an English test the next class, she also has a math test on geometry on the same day. Great, just great, her conscious said sarcastically. Not only do you have a test on some stupid adjectives in English, you also have an exam on your worst math subject, on the same day.  
  
"Argh, this is going to be a long weekend of studying." She said to herself. Sakuno wasn't the genius type, like Fuji or Ryoma, but she earned her good grades from working hard and paying attention in class. She wondered how the hell she could finish studying in just a weekend, how she wished that Ryoma was there to tutor her in Eng-.  
  
/Stop. Rewind./  
  
/Oh. My. Gosh./  
  
She did not just wish that.  
  
She /did not/ just wish for him of all people to tutor her. That's right, Sakuno didn't need Ryoma to help her in English, or so she thought. She could ask other people, like...um...someone else who was good at English.  
  
The thing was that she didn't know anyone else who was good at English.  
  
The only option she has left: go to the library and find a /Japanese/ book to help her study. So she did just that. Sakuno got up, got her bag and went out of the door.  
  
On the way there, she passed through the familiar street Ryoma's house was on. She bit her lips; there was no way she was going to swallow her pride for something that he did wrong. With a firm shake of her head, she walked off, just glancing back at his house, or rather, his window to be exact. But it was too far to see anything. The sunlight reflected onto the window, making it impossible.  
  
She was about to turn, but a familiar voice called out to her.  
  
"Hey, Ryuzaki-chan!" Kazami Haiyato yelled across the street.  
  
"Kazami-san?" she questioned, wondering what he was doing in this weather, as it was pouring like crazy.  
  
"Hai," he grinned sheepishly, "what are you doing here?"  
  
Sakuno was surprised, for she running into Kazami a lot lately. "Um...I was going to the library to study for the English test. How about you?"  
  
"O...I was just going to return some overdue library books," he responded, "come on, by this speed, we are going to be soaked even with an umbrella."  
  
"H-Hai." Sakuno didn't protest as he gently led her away by holding on to her wrist. It had been a long time since anybody had done that to her since she ignored most of the guys in Seigaku High. Sakuno felt Kazami quicken his pace, so she kept up to him without breaking the hand contact. It felt nice, having a warm hand on hers. As they stopped in the lobby of the library, she sighed in relief. Finally, the walk in the rain was over.  
  
"Hey, Ryuzaki-chan?" Kazami spoke up. She jumped a little since she got used to the silence they had when they were walking.  
  
"Um?" She was distracted and she was not going to deny it. There was something bugging her, but she couldn't figure out what.  
  
"Want me to help you on your English?" He offered generously. "I am pretty good, not the greatest, but still decent."  
  
Now, Sakuno was really surprise. Besides the polite "hi" and "bye", she and Kazami were basically strangers to each other. Was she that obvious that she needed help in English? Still, he offered, and she wasn't about to let a free English course go away.  
  
"S-Sure." She replied meekly. "Are you sure you wouldn't mind?"  
  
"Of course not." Kazami responded. "I have nothing else better to do anyways. Besides, it has been a while since we last talked, so it's a good time to catch up."  
  
She nodded mutely, not bothering to remind him with the fact that they had talked just this afternoon. That was the last thing she was thinking about. The nagging feeling in the back of her head was still there, troubling her. Sakuno followed Kazami into the English books section of the library, not noting the piercing blue gaze or the bright blue stare two people were shooting her and Kazami.  
  
The former prodigy of Seigaku High School stood beside his normally hyperactive friend. He wasn't smiling, but he was frowning. That was normally a bad sign.  
  
"Hoi!!! Did you see that!!!" Kikumaru Eiji yelled, causing the bystanders to look at them. Shooting them an apologetic look, he lowered his voice a little. "Ryuzaki-kun just went in with the vice-captain!!!"  
  
"Saa...I saw." He replied calmly. Fuji Syusuke knew that Ryoma still loved the girl with the braids, and that the feeling was mutual between the two. He saw Kazami holding her wrist, unwilling to let go.  
  
"Mou!! We need to go and look after Ochibi's girl!!!" Eiji tried to drag Fuji to where Sakuno and Kazami went. "What are you doing, Fuji? Don't you know that we need to go and look after Ryuzaki-kun, nya???" Eiji whined. "Come on!!! We are going to talk to them, bother them, whatever! Nya, we can't miss this!!!"  
  
Fuji could tell from the way Kazami was holding Sakuno possessively that it wasn't just a friendly feeling. Eiji was right, there's no way they can pass this chance by. "Saa...let's go."  
  
As Eiji dragged him to where Sakuno and Kazami went, Fuji fixed the smile back onto his face. There's nothing wrong with talking to them, it was just going to be a friendly chat. Ya right.  
  
Besides, he thought, a beautiful smirk gracing his lips, it would be fun to watch Kazami suffer out of annoyance.  
  
AN: READ AND REVIEW!!! Yay, I got 8 reviews for the prologue!!! Whew...I finished writing the first chapter!!! =] It took me longer than I expected, sorry. I just couldn't resist to put Fuji and Eiji in there. After all, they are the 2 of my favourite characters!!! I think the next chapter is either going to be in Fuji's or Eiji's POV. I have no idea when the chapter should be out, but I am working as fast as I can without rushing the plotline. Anyways...thank you Kelly and Rachel again for proofreading and giving me ideas. TT 


	3. M a n i p u l a t i o n

Disclaimer: Takeshi Konomi created Prince of Tennis. Anything you recognize – I don't own. Anything you don't – I do own.  
  
AN: Thank you to everyone who reviewed, I appreciated it all, and yes, even the constructive comments from Cinpii, LoL =]. I now know the problems within my chapters, and yes, I know my horrible grammar. Which is why I need a beta-reader. If anyone is interested, my email is in my bio page. Anyways, this chapter is mostly more focused on Fuji's POV, although there are some other people's POV. After a few days of arguing with myself whose POV this chapter is going to be in, Eiji or Fuji I went with Fuji. I want them to keep a bit of their old personalities with them, Fuji still has his sadist nature and Eiji is hyperactive most of the time. But overall, they matured through life. Went to Troy on May 15th, I'm a BIG fan of Orlando Bloom. It was AMAZING!!!! I love that movie!!!! I recommend t!!!! Okay, okay, I know I am going off topic. Here it is, my third chapter. I edited it this time, so even though I tried my best, there might be some grammatical problems. Anyways, hope you enjoy it =].  
  
**Pieces of My Heart  
  
Chapter 2 – Manipulation**  
  
"Heh, Fuji?"  
  
"Hai?" the smile on his face never wavered.  
  
"Will this work?"  
  
"Why wouldn't it?'" the smile widened by a bit.  
  
"I think they are in a pretty serious study session." His red haired companion replied. "Ryuzaki-chan seemed to be actually listening to him."  
  
"Saa...," he answered back, picking an English novel off the shelf. "Then we'll see what happens. Won't we?" The "_innocent_" smile on his face somehow changed itself to a smirk.  
  
"Nya..." Eiji trailed off, "I don't know about this. How is walking over to them going to help?"  
  
"We'll see." That was all he said to his best friend's question.  
  
"Hoi?" Eiji questioned. "But Fuji, don't we need to plan things before hand? I mean..."

"Don't worry, Eiji, everything will work out," Fuji reassured smoothly. "Let's go." With that, the brunette and the redhead quietly walked their way over to Sakuno and Kazami.  
  
When they were less than two meters away from the objects of their attention, Eiji started to be unsure. Ya, he was the one who wanted to come in the first place, but now...he was not so sure. His normal spying didn't really involve "_accidentally_" finding people in certain places and manipulate the situation until one of them was pissed off. He started to shoot uncertain glances towards the blue-eyed prodigy, who seemed to be as calm as always, not a bead of sweat on his face. The normal smile that he pasted on his face was there and if you look closely, an  
almost invisible trace of a smirk was hanging onto his lips. Well, it was good that at  
least one of them was confident as always, because he didn't know what was he suppose to do. Now they were about no more than a meter away.  
  
"_Fuji???_ What do we do now???? We should've just stayed over there to see what they were doing, not talk to them."He whispered rather loudly, but not enough for Sakuno and Kazami to notice.  
  
"Saa...just relax." Fuji's smile widened even more, if that was possible.  
  
Half a meter.  
  
"Hoi??? Relax??? How am I supposed to do that??? I don't even know what to do!!!!"  
  
"Be yourself and just let _ME _handle the rest." Fuji said, as he gently pushed the energetic and slightly panicked boy slightly ahead of him.  
  
"Nya?" Eiji said, just as he almost tumbled across the feet of the male tutor of the studying pair. Of course, being the one that had the fastest reflex on their high school tennis team, Eiji was going to dodge the feet and regain his grounds. He would've done that if the smiling boy behind him gave an unseen not-so-soft push. As he gave in to the urge of a  
surprised yelp, Eiji couldn't help but step on the left foot of Kazami Haiyato. Hard.'  
  
Fuji Syusuke almost winced and felt sorry for the vice-captain. Almost. But that was the way life is. Shrugging, Fuji smirked inwardly to himself, life was unfair, and you had to live with it. He learned it the harsher way and he survived. This was nothing compared to what he went through and it was just too bad for Kazami to pick Sakuno of all girls to like.  
  
"Ouch!!!" Kazami's sharp yelp rang throughout the library, earning them a pointed glare from the twenty-something female librarian. Luckily, one cheeky grin from Eiji and an easy smile from Fuji were all it took for her to blush and look away.  
  
Eiji swallowed. "_Just be yourself..._" Fuji's words echoed in his mind. "_Just be yourself, be yourself, be yourself..._" Concentrating on those words, his eyes became playful, the sweating stopped, he calmed down and his normal enthusiastic grin was across his lips. He was ready.  
  
Fuji took a quick look at his partner in crime, Eiji seemed to recovered form his earlier nervousness and was perfectly normal. Slits of cerulean blue eyes peeked under the eyelids and the wicked smile appeared to be replaced by a concerned one. To Kazami, Fuji looked genuinely worried and he probably couldn't image what the tensai and the acrobat player had planned for him ahead.  
  
"Life is a game." A wise person Fuji knew told him. "A game that nobody can win in." That didn't stop him to manipulate life, did it? Any second now, Eiji will start the first step. "Nya!!! Mengo, mengo!!!" Eiji apologized to Kazami bouncily, who was rubbing his feet. "I didn't see your feet there at all!!!" As he bowed a little, Eiji caught his eyes and nodded slightly.  
  
Although, life might be a game and none of them might not win at the end. But for now, Kazami was going to play this game by _his_ rules. Why? It was simply because he was Fuji Syusuke. To him, life didn't control _him, _he controlled _it._ **No** questions asked.  
  
Fuji's concerned smile wavered dangerously to a smirk, but he caught himself.  
  
Let the games begin.  
  
AN: Read and Review!!! OMG...GOING TO ANIME NORTH THIS WEEKEND!!!! SO EXCITED!!!! This is probably one of my shortest chapter ever!!!! I don't really know if this is good or not. This is just the beginning of the manipulation. Fuji and Eiji are not completely the way I portrayed them in this chapter. They have a darker and more mature side to them, especially Fuji, I want him to be harded by an aspect of life that I will later on write about. Anyways, I know that I'm focusing on Fuji and Eiji in this chapter and the half of all of the next chapter also. I also am aware that this is a RYOMA x SAKUNO fic. FUJI AND EIJI WILL BE DEEPLY INVOLVED WITH THOSE TWO'S problems. As much as I love those two, Sakuno and Ryoma is the main point in this story. I love writing about our favourite couple!!! Getting back on the topic again , constructive comments welcomed, everything welcomed. I want opinions, some can be good, some can be bad. Although what I love the most is constructive comments or just a nice review with good suggestions hint hint LoLzZZ. Next week is my grad trip!!!! Won't be back until next Friday. So...don't expect the next chapter for a while...hehehe..have to go now. TTYL =] 


	4. M e d d l i n g

**Disclaimer:** Takeshi Konomi created Prince of Tennis. Anything you recognize – I don't own. Anything you don't – I do own.

**Pieces of My Heart**

**Chapter 3 – Meddling**

The rain was pouring outside and dark clouds gathered together in the sky above the library. Drivers rushed their cars on the streets, not wanting to get caught in the rain, and a dark figure walked out of the main door of the building with an umbrella in his hands. As he came closer into the light, a dazed and happy expression was imprinted on his handsome face.

_What had just happened? _

Kazami Haiyato thought as he stepped into the rain, the sound of the liquid hitting his umbrella woke him from his thoughts. Everything happened so fast that he didn't have enough time to remember what made him come out in the rain, instead of being in a nice and warm place with _Sakuno_. All he really remembered is that Kikumaru-senpai and Fuji-senpai had came into the library, and the hyper redhead accidentally killed a nerve in his left foot, but afterwards…

_20 Minutes Ago_

"_So, Ryuzaki-chan," Fuji asked pleasantly, "what are you and Kazami-kun doing here?"_

"_Kazami-san is tutoring me in E-English," Sakuno replied politely, "W-We have a test on Monday."_

"_Saa…is that so?" Fuji's ever-present smile widened by a bit, "Well, good luck on the test, Ryuzaki-chan."_

"_Nya! English is so troublesome, don't you think so, Sakuno-chan." Eiji bounced into the conversation in a way that only he can. "Oh, can I call you Sakuno-chan?"_

"_S-Sure, Kikumaru-senpai" Sakuno was a little taken back, "and thank you, Fuji-senpai."_

"_You're welcome." For a second, Sakuno thought she saw a slit of blue peeking out under the long lashes. But as fast as it came, it was gone. _

_Fuji spoke up again, "So, is he good at tutoring?" _

_Kazami smiled sheepishly, "Welllll, I kind of didn't get the part about compound sentences…hehehe."_

_Eiji peered at the English textbook and smiled teasingly at Sakuno and Kazami. "And it's the most important part, too, nya!" _

"_Excuse me for a moment, please. I need to get a cup of coffee, rainy days always get me a little tired." Fuji chuckled. "Anyone want a cup?"_

_After all three of them shook their heads, Fuji stood up, graceful as ever, and walked out of the sight. Eiji started with his usual cheerful chatter, but while Kazami listened attentively, Sakuno started to study her English notebook again. After what seemed like forever, Fuji finally returned with a single cup of coffee in his hands. _

"_Sorry," he apologized, "it was a long line-up."_

_Eiji smiled brightly. "No worries, Fuji. I was just telling Kazami about how the old team was doing."_

"_Saa…, is that so?"_

"_Do you still play tennis, Fuji-senpai?" Kazami questioned curiously. He had heard that Tezuka went into professional tennis, but nobody mentioned anything about Fuji playing. _

"_Sometimes," came the brief answer. _

"_Oh, why only sometimes? Are your classes that time consuming?"_

"_I guess." Another short answer._

"_Why hadn't you gone pro?" _

"_Pro? I don't know…I guess that it is just not for me." Fuji replied. " Anyways, how are your classes, Kazami-kun?"_

"_Fine, I think. But Ryuzaki-chan is having a little bit of trouble with English, right?" He teased gently, but when nobody heard Sakuno answer, the three pairs of eyes turned in her direction._

_Instead of studying intently as they expected her to be doing, Sakuno was staring into space. She had turned her head so that her gaze was facing the window, her expressive eyes widened slightly, an unreadable expression written on her face. Outside the glass, wind was blowing wildly while the rain was pouring down the sky. _

_Snap_

_Kazami smiled as Sakuno blushed as she realized that she had been zoning out. "Welcome back. Did you have a nice trip?"_

"_G-Gomen." She answered meekly, "I should've paid more attention."_

"_Nya," Eiji decided to cut in, "no worries, not a lot of people could stay focused in English."_

"_Yeah, don't worry about it." Kazami agreed. "Anyways, as I was saying…"_

_As he droned on and on, Fuji followed Sakuno's gaze as her eyes went back to where she had been staring at before. Holding an umbrella and wearing his usual expression…_

_**Echizen Ryoma was a lot closer to the entrance of the library now. **_

_If nobody else were watching, Fuji's smirk would have been at full blast right now. Just as he expected, Echizen had no idea how the girl was still head over heels in love with him, and he was pretty sure the feeling was mutual. Mentally, he started checking off his list._

_Step one: getting Ryoma to come to the library. Complete._

_Fuji turned his attention back to Eiji and Kazami, who were busy talking about their favourite singing group…_

" – _and then I opened it up, it was their latest concert CD!" Eiji proceeded to tell the other guy about the concert CD his sister got for him for his birthday. _

"_Wow…," Kazami half-whispered jealously. "My sister was never that nice."_

_Eiji smiled proudly, "Haha, my onee-chan is the best!" _

"_I can tell." Kazami smiled._

"_Do you want to come and watch the concert CD, nya?" Eiji offered helpfully._

_The younger guy's expression was apologetic, "I would really love to, but I'm going walk Ryuzaki-chan home first. There is no way that I'm letting her walk home alone."_

"_It's okay," Fuji spoke up suddenly, causing everybody to look at him. "I'll stay and tutor Ryuzaki-chan her English and you two can watch the concert CD together." _

_Kazami's expression stayed the same. "No, it is too much trouble to you. Besides, I promised Ryuzaki-chan I would help her to study."_

_"Saa… I insist," Fuji said. "I can tell you want to watch that CD. You don't need to worry. I'll make sure that Ryuzaki-chan gets home safely."_

_"Kazami-san, it's ok. Really." Sakuno reassured the vice-captain. _

_"Good," Eiji smiled. "Then it's settled. Kazami-kun, can you go and wait for a bit while I talk to Fuji for a minute?" With that, he guided the other two males out of the corner that they were at. _

When he finished collecting his things, Kazami was still a little reluctant to leave Sakuno even though she had insisted that he should go.

"Alright," he sighed. "Are you sure you will be okay though?"

She smiled gently at him and he grinned back. "I'll go find Kikumaru–senpai now. If you have anymore troubles, you know where to find me."

"H-Hai, Kazami-san."

"Kun."

"Huh?" The timid girl was surprised.

"Call me Kazami-kun," he said good naturally with an easy smile. "Kazami-san makes me feel too old"

Sakuno stared at him for a second before her lips curved into a shy smile. "Hai, K-Kazami-kun."

He grinned and turned to go, leaving Sakuno to stare at his back as he walked away. After his form disappeared from her view, she just smiled into the space before turning her head back down to study more English.

"Nya! What are you planning to do now?" Eiji practically bounced around Fuji to get more information.

"Shhhh, Eiji. Don't be too loud." The other didn't reveal anything as usual.

"But Fuji," the cheerful acrobatic player whined. "I'm a part of this too!"

"I know, Eiji," Fuji comforted. "Although right now, we need to take one step at a time about what we are going to do."

"Fuji!" He pouted. "Stop talking in circles and tell me! What are you planning to do next?"

"Sa..." the ex-tennis prodigy half murmured to himself, not really replying his best friend.

Before Eiji even moved his lips to make a reply, Kazami's voice was heard. "Kikumaru-senpai?"

Eiji turned around and gave the source of the voice a big cheery smile. "Ay, Kazami-kun. Are you ready now?" After a nod of affirmation was received, he put his jacket on and turned to Fuji.

"I'll see you tomorrow, nya?" **Fine, we'll drop this for now. You _will_ tell me about it, right?**

"Of course." Fuji made his silent apology. **Every little detail, I promise.**

"You better," Eiji winked. "Oishi and Tezuka are coming to my apartment for the monthly dinner. Don't be late!" **Good. Or else I'll tell on you to them.**

The other man chuckled. "Don't worry, I won't." **Haha, we'll see about that.**

Sakuno was still having trouble with structures of a compound sentence and how it differs from a complex sentence when she heard light footsteps approaching her. Looking up, she found Fuji's ever-smiling face look back at her. He caught her gaze and sat down in the chair across from her casually.

"Sorry that I took so long," Fuji apologized. He wasn't very pleased at how everything turned out. Even though he got the point to his plans through, things did not go as smoothly as he wanted – thanks to Kazami's amazing patience. It was supposed to be fun since Kazami was supposed to be suffering out of annoyance, anger, whatever. Kazami should have left the library unsettled and a little angry, not happy and excited. Oh well. Even though he did not have as much fun as his sadistic side would have liked, Kazami _did_ leave the library.

Sakuno shook her head left to right quickly, "N-No. It's alright."

"Okay," Fuji took her English textbook and read over some of the paragraphs. "Let's look at the structure of compound sentences once more."

When all the response that he had from Sakuno was her exhaling some breaths shakily, Fuji knew immediately what happened. As soon as he had looked up, he mentally noted that Sakuno was staring past him with those big cinnamon eyes of hers. It certainly didn't take him three tries to guess who it was that stood behind him.

This time, Fuji didn't even try to control the smirk that found its way to his lips. There, looking grumpier than ever, stood Echizen Ryoma clutching his wet umbrella.

**AN**: I'm SOOOOOO sorry, everybody. I know this is what you are all thinking. This is ALL she writes after that long of a waiting? First, I had this incredible huge writer's block and I didn't like anything that I wrote. So I erased them all and decided to start this chapter over. Then, I had this PoT withdrawal for a while. Now I just watched the RAW of 176 with Tezuka and Fuji match and my inspiration came back in full force D. Thank you for everybody who waited patiently and still have me on their favourite/alert list )

Anyways, R/R!


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